Chinese authorities have again denied lawyers for imprisoned Tibetan language advocate Tashi Wangchuk permission to visit their client in Dongchuan Prison, Xining City, Qinghai Province.
Wangchuk had been sentenced to five years in prison in May 2018 for allegedly ‘inciting separatism’ because he criticised Chinese policies and practices on Tibetan language and culture. He did not accept the verdict and decided to appeal.
The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy in conjunction with Jagori Rural Charitable Trust carried out a 7-day residential workshop on ‘Gender Awareness, Equality and Justice’ at the Training and Research Academy in Sidhbari, Himachal Pradesh. Held from 21 to 27 July, a total of 30 participants including Tibetan students from different universities and representatives of local Tibetan NGOs…
Gyaincain Norbu (Gyaltsen Norbu), the 11th Panchen Lama appointed by Chinese authorities to nullify the Dalai Lama’s selection has been appointed president of the regional branch of Buddhist Association of China (BAC) in Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR).
On 22 June this year, Wu Yingjie, the Chinese Communist Party Secretary of TAR met with the newly elected members of the BAC’s TAR branch, a party controlled supervisory organ on Buddhism in People’s Republic of China.
The June 2019 publication of Monthly Translation and Analyses Digest monitoring Chinese government media on Tibet includes the following articles: China announces prize money for tip-offs on illegal online contents in Tibet China admits anti- separatist crackdown part of anti-crime campaign Central government inspection teams visit TAR and Qinghai Chinese authorities claim victory in anti-crime crackdown amid central government inspection…
In May this year, the Nangchen County People’s Court sentenced the 21 Tibetans in two groups. The first group of 11 Tibetans from Do Thrang village in Shordha town were sentenced to prison terms ranging from two to six years and monetary fines from 10000 to 50000 yuan.
Last month, Chinese authorities announced the acceleration of the ‘pairing assistance’ program as part its overall goal to end poverty in Ba (Ch: Tongde) County (also called Ba Dzong in common Tibetan parlance) in Tsolho (Ch: Hainan) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai Province, in the Tibetan province of Amdo. The ‘pairing assistance’ program is a nation-wide initiative of dispatching party members and local cadres to gather information on rural residents and adopt preventative measures to combat sensitive political issues from gaining traction among the masses.
The program is, for all practical purposes, a means to monitor and control the thoughts and activities of local Tibetans in the name of poverty alleviation. It requires party members and cadres to stay at the homes of local Tibetan nomads and farmers for weeks conducting political education sessions and gathering sensitive information. It has existed since 2012 alongside a host of other so-called ecological and poverty alleviation programs that are designed to facilitate mass surveillance and thought control.
The May 2019 publication of Monthly Translation and Analyses Digest monitoring Chinese government media on Tibet includes the following articles: China increases party presence in harvesting areas in Chamdo ‘Four Loves’ propaganda campaign incorporated into state education institutions Party-building ‘grassroots fortresses’ in new poverty alleviation resettlement villages Special four-month rectification campaign against mobile educational apps China continues with flawed policy of…
The Tibetan Center for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) has received a photo of Dorjee who died in 2012 after setting his body on fire to protest repressive policies of the Chinese government in Tibet.
The photo could not be shared earlier due to pervasive surveillance and criminalisation of self-immolation protests in Tibet. A number of Tibetans had been imprisoned for sharing news and images about self-immolation on the charges of ‘leaking state secrets’ or ‘maintaining illegal contacts with outsiders’.
2018 has been a pivotal year for human rights in Tibet and the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The introduction of new policies and regulations has led to an increased restriction on human rights and lives of the Tibetan people. This has resulted in the arbitrary detention and arrest of Tibetans, who have been exercising their rights to peaceful assembly, freedom of movement, religious and culture freedom and their right to an adequate standard of living, among others.
The introduction of a nationwide campaign in January 2018 to eliminate all forms of ‘organised crime’ and ‘evil forces’ codified long-standing instances of human rights violations in Tibet. Although a campaign of this nature is not new in Tibet, the scope of the activities it publicly criminalises is unprecedented, as it covers activities related to social welfare and Tibetan cultural practices, and other civil society initiatives to improve the lives of ordinary Tibetans. In reality, the so-called ‘war on organised crime’ is being waged to expand and strengthen the Chinese Communist Party influence and networks at lower-level jurisdictions and primarily in rural areas. As seen in the past, the increased efforts to “strengthen political power at the grassroots level” have led to an unprecedented tightening of control and political repression in Tibetan areas, turning Tibet into a human rights black hole.
Tibetans are subjected to arbitrary arrest and detention with prolonged period of criminal detention, allowing Chinese officials to escalate their unlawful practices by means of violence and torture to obtain forced confessions. Tibetans face obstacles to have access to a fair trial, especially if the charges held against them are of a political nature. Indeed, very few got to exercise this right in formal proceedings.
Tibetans’ inability to travel within and outside of Tibet has been steadily growing. The numerous checkpoints and roadblocks, along with the barriers to obtaining a passport has made it near impossible for Tibetans to travel, with some experts noting that circumambulating around the Potala Palace in Lhasa is now more difficult than getting into an airport.
The right to freedom of religion and belief is targeted by the Party’s two-pronged policy on religion such as ‘adapting religion to socialism with Chinese characteristics’ and ‘sinicising Tibetan Buddhism’. This has led to the enforced enrollment of young Tibetan monks into Chinese government schools and the prevention of Tibetan language workshops to be held in local monastic institutions.
The presence of a healthy environment and an adequate standard of living continue to decline rapidly as Tibetans have been unable to influence policy decisions to diminish the effects of river pollution, grassland degradation and desertification, land tenure security, among others.
The 2018 annual report highlights the continued human rights violations that occur in Tibet on a daily basis, without intervention from the international community. To read the full extent of the PRC’s impact on the Tibetan people in 2018, click on the link.
By Ngawang Choephel Drakmargyapon*
“If I die, I think two to three years, I think the Chinese may choose even one Dalai Lama. But Tibetans (will) not accept that. The Panchen Lama which they choose, some Chinese officials also they describe as ‘Fake Panchen Lama’.”
~ His Holiness the Dalai Lama, TIME Magazine, 7 March 2019
This report is an account of the largely unknown attempts made to ascertain the whereabouts, the well-being and the fate of Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, the Eleventh Panchen Lama of Tibet at the United Nations.[1] It attempts to provide a comprehensive narrative on the efforts by the international community over the past more than two decades to determine the fate of the Panchen Lama by particularly highlighting how the mechanisms of the UN human rights system have played a crucial role to help the Tibetans, followers of Tibetan Buddhism, supporters of Tibet and others by initiating interventions on the case directly with the Chinese authorities.
Gedhun Choekyi Nyima was recognised on 14 May 1995 by His Holiness the Dalai Lama during a ceremony in Dharamsala, India. His Holiness declared: “Today is the auspicious day when the Buddha first gave the Kalachakra teaching. The Kalachakra teachings have a special connection with the Panchen Lamas. On this occasion, which also happens to be the Vaisaki, it is with great joy that I am able to proclaim the reincarnation of Panchen Rinpoche. I have recognized Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, born on April 25, 1989, whose father is Kunchok Phuntsog, and mother Dechen Chodon, of Lhari district in Nagchu, Tibet, as the true reincarnation of Panchen Lama.”
Earlier this week, a Chinese court sentenced nine Tibetans from three to seven years in prison in Rebkong (Ch: Tongren) County, Malho (Ch: Huangnan) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai Province, in the Tibetan province of Amdo. The nine Tibetans from Horgyal village namely Gendun Soepa, Choesang, Bhende Dorje, Tashi Tsering, Sonam Gyal, Dhargye, Shawo Tsering, Khajam Gyal, and Dukbum…